Red Bird Plant

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Mirco Hampton, GA Aug 17, 2008

I have had this plant for a long time-about 8 years. This year was the first year it bloomed. I love it. But now (and I don't remember this happening before) it is dropping a lot of leaves. Did I mess it up by transplanting it in a bigger pot?

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) Aug 17, 2008

If you just moved it, it could just be a little transplant shock, you can get that when you repot something so it may be nothing to worry about at all. But I would doublecheck your watering, if it's the plant that I know as red bird plant (Pedilanthus tithymoides) it's a succulent and doesn't need a lot of water so overwatering would be an easy mistake to make. Two things happen when you repot into a larger pot--one is your habit is to continue watering at the same frequency as you did before, when in reality now that there's more soil around to hold water you will likely need to water less often. And the second thing that can happen if you move it into a pot that's much larger than the one it was in is that there's so much soil around to hold water that the roots can't take it up very quickly at all, and they end up sitting in wet soil for a much longer time than is good for them.

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lbrabec (Lynn) Omaha, NE(Zone 5a) Aug 17, 2008

Do you have a picture? Yeow leaves are often a watering issue,but not always.(particularly overwatering)
Lynn

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lbrabec (Lynn) Omaha, NE(Zone 5a) Aug 17, 2008

Sorry ecrane3.We cross-posted.

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dp72 Woodway, TX(Zone 8a) Aug 17, 2008

If it did well for that long, and BLOOMED, which is unusual, I'd try to figure out what is different and go back to what I was doing back then. Transplant shock is not common with pedilanthus. The only thing I can think of is that the new soil may hold more water than the existing soil did, and the excess moisture could be the culprit. Also, since there is more soil, more water will be retained when you do water. So, cutting back on watering would be the first thing to try, I would think. You know about sticking a finger down into the soil to find if it's damp. If it is, don't water. The surface of the soil will also feel slightly cool to the touch if it has a good bit of moisture in it. Was it rootbound? This is a semi-suculent, and they don't like a lot of excess soil in a pot.

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